


Breaking Away from the Darkness

by existentialspook



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords
Genre: Abuse, Angst, Friendship, Gen, Hitting, Violence, btw the abuse is just Vaati and Shadow dw, censored name-calling, overcoming, shouldn't be that graphic in the first chapter but just in case
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-22
Updated: 2016-09-30
Packaged: 2018-08-16 18:58:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8113759
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/existentialspook/pseuds/existentialspook
Summary: Shadow Link decides he's sick of being Vaati's puppet - he's going to break away from this terrible darkness.A bit of an explanation in the notes.Based off of a 100-Theme Challenge I did, where there were two parts, Breaking Away and Darkness. I've combined them and rewritten them here. The original work is on FF.net.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So, basically, a while ago on my FF.net account I decided to try and do a 100-theme challenge with Four Swords, but I didn't get very far. I've rewritten a few of the best ones (so basically just 2-3 of them lol) and here they are. Breaking Away and Darkness. (If you want to read the original you can find it here: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10682018/6/Four-Swords-100-Theme-Challenge)

_part one: darkness_

     “Get up, you worthless piece of ****!” However short he was, when the mage Vaati got angry, he always towered over the shadow boy cringing on the ground. Wind blasted around them with complete fury as he glared down at the teenager, foot and hand poised to strike again. “I said get up, you blockhead!”

     Shadow Link lay on the floor of the throne room, completely helpless in a quickly-ebbing tide of crimson that clashed against the palace’s violet stones. He clutched the sides of his head to protect his face, but this left the rest of his body exposed to his master’s kicks and slaps. _I’ve barely done anything wrong!_ he wanted to cry out. _All I did was check on my friends…_

     He had just been looking - just _looking -_ at the people he used to know, watching them through a puddle similar to the Dark Mirror he had used to spy on them before it was shattered. He missed them. But in the process of this he had been caught by one of Vaati’s other dark minions, brought back to the castle, and thrown to the ground to be punished. Now Vaati wanted him to stand up, just so he could beat him back onto the cold, hard floor. But he couldn’t bring himself to, physically or mentally.

     “Shadow Link!” The five-foot villain leaned down and shouted the poor boy’s name directly into his already-pounding ears. “I SAID UP! Up! Up!” With every command another strike was administered. _It hurts...it hurts so much….!_

     “Master Vaati!” The boy finally managed to cry out in the midst of his great pain. Weakly stretching his arms across the floor in front of him he attempted to claw away from the man’s rage. “Please!” He had no strength to move, no strength to cry, no shadow powers at his command; Master Vaati had taken all of these things away from him. He had taken his entire essence.

     “I TOLD YOU TO STAND UP! Are you really asking for _more_ punishment?!” Vaati continued to scream, his voice taking up the entire room. The blazing hurricane only added volume to his words. Shadow wanted to retort, _Does it really matter whether I am standing up or lying on the ground? You’ll continue to beat me anyway._ Even if he could though, it’d be an awful idea.

 _I have to try, at least...he might actually kill me this time._ Wheezing and dripping red, he pushed part of his body up onto trembling arms, letting his legs remain on the floor. For once Vaati and his winds relented; Shadow struggled and struggled, and he finally managed to stand, even if he had barely made it. He almost immediately dropped to his knees but refused, fearing worse consequence than if he continued to stand.

     His master approached him, seemingly unaffected by the boy’s state. “Good. Now get out of my sight. Clean yourself up and I expect you back here within 15 minutes.” His tone was icy and dangerous, full of even more malice and spite than the words he had yelled amidst the hurricane. “Do not disobey me again.” His beady red eyes stared into the boy’s broken blue, and with a wave of his hand Shadow had been carried by winds into his sleeping quarters.

     As soon as he was unceremoniously dumped onto what you could hardly call his bed - a thin rug on the floor - he collapsed, still bleeding. His face and torso stung and he ached everywhere else. Groaning, he dragged himself towards the nearest support, a chair. Slowly he propped himself up, managing to place himself in the seat, and sat for a few minutes, clutching his stomach as he rested. _Take deep breaths...1...2...3..._

     He missed the other Links.

     They would’ve never treated him like anything close to this. Not Blue, even at his angriest. Heck, not even Ganon. Ganon would’ve simply ignored him after telling him what to do, and if he did screw up, probably would’ve only hit him once and left him alone. Lord Vaati was cruel and proud, always imagining himself higher than the Gerudo king. Shadow always snickered at the thought - one day, Vaati would be smote by Ganon for thinking such things.

     But right now, he couldn’t focus on that. He had to clean himself up. Standing up with an immediate and intense throbbing all over his body, he hobbled towards the room’s exit to find some sort of rag to staunch his wounds, and perhaps wipe off some of the fresher blood that stained his clothes.

     The Dark World wasn’t named just for blackness that covered the entire world, blocking out any semblance of true light or hope. It was named for the cruelty and oppression the shadow creatures that lived there endured through, ruled over evils like Vaati and Ganon. But one day, Shadow vowed, he would escape. One day, he would be free, and Shadow would see Green and Red and Blue and Zelda again.

     And, one day, he would find Vio.


	2. part two: breaking away

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> part two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took me almost two full months to write....whoops.

_ part two: breaking away _

“Shadow Link!”

I had learned from the first time I chose to ignore my master’s calling. I was just a bit younger than I am now, and I didn’t know any better. I didn’t know why I was created, or who pulled me from the darkness. How was I supposed to know what this new person wanted from me? I had been brutally whipped for it, however helpless I was. From that point on I did whatever what was asked of me by whoever happened to be standing by, the potential consequence of a beating like my first always looming over my head. 

I sat up sleepily and mumbled a loud reply. “Yes, Lord Vaati?” 

The wind mage appeared in the doorway of my room, looking deeply angry at me like always. “What are you doing asleep, you little brat? Get your *** off the floor!” He marched over to me and stood over me threateningly as I scrambled to follow his orders. This was totally unfair - he was acting like he had told me last night that he expected something of me this morning. But, per usual, he didn’t warn me at all beforehand. He was totally unpredictable.  _ He probably doesn’t tell me on purpose, just so he can have another excuse take all of his anger out on me. _

I managed to pull myself up after suffering a kick to the stomach. “What is your desire, O Master of Winds?” I hated calling Vaati pompous titles like ‘Lord’ and ‘Master’. It was the bane of my existence. But if I didn’t, he would, of course, beat me. It was honestly ridiculous. I considered leaving the honorifics out once or twice, but I suffer enough daily, so I would swallow it down and use them anyway.

“I want you to go check on something for me.” Dusting myself off, I gave him a look that I hoped translated across as “Please, continue”. 

He did. “There is, I hear, movement of the four Links across Death Mountain. Find them and destroy them without relent. Don’t stop to talk to them, or goddesses know you might get attached to that  _ purple boy _ again. When you report back to me, I will visit their bodies myself to ensure they are truly dead.” He gave me a wicked smile and then glanced down at his long fingernails, as if what he had just requested was perfectly casual, like an errand to the marketplace. “If you fail your job in any way, you will suffer in their place.”

I nodded slowly, trying not to show my the terror that filled my mind. He gestured for me to follow him and led me to the palace library. On the center table was a diagram of the mountain, spread out. “This is where they should be.” He pointed about halfway up.

“Yes, master.” I gritted my teeth. “I do have one question though.”

He lifted an eyebrow. I prayed that I wouldn’t be hit after speaking. “How...how am I supposed to  _ get  _ to the Light World? Aren’t we...sealed off?”

I did not like the grin that followed. “Ganon and I managed to find a strange loophole around the seal.”

“What?”  _ Wait...does this mean...does this mean I might have a chance? A chance to get away? _

“Something happened with the seal; it took several experiments, but if an extreme amount of power is collected, small, powerless things can be sent through the barrier between the light and dark worlds.”

_ But if they gain more power, then…a whole repeat of what just happened could follow... _ As much as I wanted my freedom, I would rather stay here than let darkness have another chance at taking over Hyrule. Even if it meant I could never see  _ them _ again.

“Now, Shadow Link - I’m sending you through,” he commanded with a rough voice. “Step away from the table.” 

I obeyed him immediately; he lifted a finger to the sky, summoning his teleportation magic, and then pointed at me. 

As his sorcery lifted me into the air, everything went dark, and I heard his voice echoing all around me. “I am sending your powers to help you, Shadow Link. But if you disappoint me you will most certainly lose your life again - and this time I’ll make sure Ganon doesn’t revive you.”

***

I landed hard on rocky mountain terrain.  _ Ouch.  _

Standing up, I brushed myself off and gathered my bearings. According to Vaati, the place he had pointed out should be just ahead…

Familiar voices reached my ears. I crept behind a rock to listen.

“I’m tired!” 

A small, high-pitched voice.  _ Red.  _ He was small and annoying, but I missed his optimism, and his ability to make someone smile even when they were feeling at their worst. He could even brighten any of Blue’s bad days.

“Stop whining about it, you big baby! Does it look like we have much of a choice?!” said a rougher, deeper voice. I couldn’t help but chuckle under my breath.  _ There he is - Blue.  _ He pissed me off, and I liked pissing him off in return, but the guy had a good heart and would protect those he loved to the end of his life. 

“Watch it!” chided another strong tone. 

This is literally how all of their conversations go. _ It’s pathetic, really... _

The one doing the scolding was Green. As jealous as I was of him, he cared so much about everyone and did his best to lead the other two idiots. He was the one who kept us all together.

“We need to focus on the path ahead.”

My ears perked up slightly at the sound of Vio’s quiet voice. So calm, so intelligent; always the voice of reason. As condescending as the tone was, I missed it.  _ My first, and best, friend.  _

“Don’t tell me what to do!” Blue replied. It sounded like some sort of scuffling was going on, and Red cried out a little bit. 

A heavy sigh. I recognized it as Vio’s. “Now, the map says the fairy fountain should be at the top…”

I shook my head as he began to lecture the others, remembering Vaati’s command. Their voices were getting distant.  _ Crap, I have to get closer.  _ I have to catch up to them and destroy them…

Snapping my fingers, I lifted myself a little above the ground with a small burst of magic. It worked! Vaati really did give my powers back! With a wicked grin I lifted myself even higher until I could see and follow the Links from a vantage point, hopefully without being seen. I’d just have to be careful not to give myself away.  _ This is going to be fun! _

I followed them for about ten minutes, looking for an opening where they would be vulnerable. I couldn’t get to them when there were Gorons around - those ugly fat beasts would call for reinforcements and gang up on me. No, I would have to wait to ambush them somewhere along the way to the fountain. Then they would be isolated...if I remembered right, they’d also have to make it through a patch of volcanic activity, and climb some vines on the side of the mountain.  _ There’s the ideal spot.  _

I could swoop in on them while they were recovering, avoiding the rocks myself, and slash them into bits, or blow them away...maybe if I was quick, I could carry them off one by one and throw them off the side of the peak.  _ Goddesses, I’ve missed my powers… _

“Blue! I thought I told you to leave him ALONE  _ for once! _ ” Green shouted at the stubborn hero. Blue crossed his arms with a huff. “What did he ever do to you?”

“That’s right, I did nothing~!” Red piped up. “All I did was walk a little close to him!”

“Really?” Vio said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Another thing I missed about him. “Really, Blue - who knew you were so territorial?”

“Shut up! He was being creepy again!”

They were almost to the rocks - if I came in while they were distracted, I bet I could easily pick up Red. So I crouched a little closer, preparing to make my leap…

__Wait!  
  
Vio’s eyes drifted over to where I was and complete shock crossed his face. But he didn’t say a thing. None of the other Links noticed me. All he did was stare at me, wide-eyed.

It stopped me in my tracks.  _ What am I doing? I don’t want to hurt them.  _ Was I really this pathetic? Was a look from Vio all it took to make me stop my plans of destruction?

Did I even want to destroy them in the first place? Did Vaati’s promise of returning my powers somehow manage to brainwash me?

He finally looked away, continuing walking as if I hadn’t been there at all. Why didn’t he point me out to the others?  _ Vio... _

I knew what I had to do. 

No matter what the consequences were.

I came down from my perch in the sky and silently materialized behind Vio, putting my hand on his shoulder.

He didn’t jump at all, as if he knew I’d come down to greet them, and turned around calmly.  _ Of course, Vio. You know me better than anybody else.  _

“Vio, what are you-” Green turned around and saw me, his face going white as a sheet. 

“Welcome back, Shadow.” Vio put his hand on my shoulder.

“H-how...wh-what, why?” Green stuttered. 

Blue didn’t look happy at all. On the contrary, Red leaped at me with his arms wide open.

“Shadow! You’re back!”  _ Ouch.  _ His hugs always seemed like they’d be a little too tight.

“But...how?” Green asked, finally coming to. 

“You know, in all honesty, I came to destroy you guys.”

“What?!” Blue shouted. “You trai-”

“Let me finish!” I couldn’t help but snarl. “It was under Vaati’s orders. But, when I saw you guys, I...I couldn’t.” 

Vio nodded. “I guess we’re a little confused on how you got here, but all that matters is that you’re with us now.”

Every one of them looked like they wanted me back - well, with the exception of Blue.  _ What a relief.  _ I had had so many nightmares about returning to them, and being rejected, or even killed by the light of the Four Sword.

“Yeah.”

“But I mean...out of curiosity, how did this happen?” Green asked. 

“Well…”

A loud rumbling interrupted me before I could barely start to speak. 

The sky around the mountain grew instantly dark and foggy. Loud winds erupted from nowhere.

I know what Vaati’s magic is like. I know how much power he can summon.  _ This can’t be happening.  _

Everybody looked up into the sky, alarmed. 

“What is that?!” someone yelled.

I was grabbed by the collar and lifted up into the air; looking down, I realized I had been apprehended by a snarling Blue. “What the hell have you done?!”

The other Links turned towards me. Green also had his eyes narrowed. 

“Do you  _ really  _ think I would betray you like this?!” I shouted, struggling to hear myself above the torrential winds. “I’m as clueless as you are!”

_ Did something happen? Did they manage to get enough power to… _

The storm was getting worse. It was becoming difficult to see, but if I narrowed my eyes and squinted into the eye of where it was all taking place...

A certain wind mage, blazing with fury, stared straight at me, murder in his eyes. 

“DID YOU THINK YOU COULD GET AWAY, SHADOW LINK?!” His voice boomed throughout the sky. Blue let go of me and Red rushed to my side, clinging onto me. 

“Vaati!” I shouted back. “How did you get here?!”

He smirked. “Ganon cracked the loophole with his dark power, and I was just able to slip through.” A shadow and a frown came over his face. “And what do I find here…? A dirty, rotten  _ traitor.” _

“He’s not a traitor.” Vio said, stepping up behind me. “He’s one of us.”

“Yeah!” Red agreed, still clinging to me. Blue and Green came up beside me.  _ My friends. _

“Huh?” The mage burst into a cackle. “ _ You? _ One of  _ them?”  _ His mocking laughter stung me like the light, touching the part of me that hates being pitied. I felt my hands tighten into fists, and looked down at them. Some of my own magic blazed around my clenched fingers.

“Ha, that was a good joke, Shadow Link. Now why don’t you come over here? Forget about those losers. You know how powerful we are together. Let’s run them over and then take control of the world!”

“NO!” I shouted, raising my hands and summoning a blast of magic. Even though I knew such a little amount would do nothing, I shot it at Vaati’s whirlwind as an act of defiance. “I will  _ never  _ give in to darkness again!”

“Fine! Have it your own way, you petty brat!” The evil half-Hylian raised both hands in the air; between his palms was a quickly-growing ball of light that was not unlike the Sun. 

“If Shadow gets hit by that, he could disappear!” Green points out to the others. “Get ready

to fight!”  He and the others drew their Four Swords and raised them high in the air in almost perfect sync; I summoned my own, ready to stand with them. 

Everything started glowing. My eyes began to sting; my sword faded from my grip and I had to cover my face with my hands. 

_ No! _

The light began to burn.

_ I will  _ **_not_ ** _ give in! _

_ I am not a creature of darkness any longer! _

My energy was quickly diminishing; it took a lot of mental strength to pry my hands from my eyes. The light was still there, only slightly dimmed, still brilliant enough to cause a lot of pain.

“Shadow!” I felt someone grab me, but I wasn’t sure who it was, and I couldn’t recognize their voice. “Are you alright?”

“Stupid…” Blonde hair and blue eyes were all that I could make out in my blurring vision. I realized I was looking up into their face - they were holding me. “What are you doing…? Vaati…”

“Don’t worry about that right now,” he said with a smile. 

Everything went dark.

***

_ Hmm?  _

I sat up and rubbed my eyes. 

_ Where am I? _

“Shadow!!!” Red cried out, appearing in front of me. The blurriness was gone, as was the light. Everything had returned to normal. “You’re back!”

“What happened…?”

“Force!” he exclaimed. “We drove him away with Force and light!”

“No, no, not that. What happened to me?”

“You blacked out,” Green offered. “Vaati was about to kill you so we went to stand against him, and I guess we caused a lot of light.” He looked apologetic. “Sorry.”

“You began to fall and then Blue caught you and held you until you passed out,” Vio finished.

Blue huffed, crossing his arms and looking away.  _ What a bonehead. _

“What about Vaati?”

“We drove him away with the Four Sword!” Red repeated. 

I shook my head. “You didn’t completely get rid of him again. He’ll be back.”

“When that happens, we’ll be prepared.”

“Wait...aren’t you tied to that mirror thing?” Blue questioned. “What happens if he dies…?”

I looked down at the ground. “I don’t know if I’m tied to the mirror. He hasn’t shown me where I came from. I don’t even know if there  _ is  _ a mirror.”

“I don’t want to lose you again!” cried Red. “I want you to stay with us!”

I chuckled. “I’ll stay as long as I can, okay?”

“Vaati may have gotten away, but when he comes back, you can help us defeat him again. You’re one of us now.” Vio flashed a quick, rare smile at me.

“Glad to be a part of the team.”


End file.
